Fort Lauderdale — Broward
Waterproofing is the membrane under your shower tile. It keeps water out of the wall, the framing and the slab below. Fort Lauderdale has canal homes, salt air and many single-story houses on concrete slabs, so every wet floor needs the same care. Check the membrane type, and ask for a 24-hour flood test before any tile goes down.
Fort Lauderdale is laced with canals and waterways, and many homes sit on the water. Humidity runs high beside a canal, and the wet areas in those houses see steam and spray every day.
Canal-side houses stay damp for much of the year. Pick caulk and fasteners made for wet rooms, and check the caulk lines by eye on a regular schedule.
Pool baths and outdoor showers need the same sealed edges as an indoor shower. The tile is only the finish, so the membrane under it has to run up the walls and seal at every corner and penetration.
A leak in an upstairs shower can reach the ceiling below before anyone sees a stain. That is why the membrane gets checked before tile, while the floor is still open and a leak is easy to reach.
Salt air and canal humidity are the reason the membrane and the fasteners matter more here than in a dry inland house.
Single-story homes built on a concrete slab are common across Broward. In that layout the shower floor sits on the slab, so the membrane under the tile is the main barrier between a leak and the structure.
Where a shower has no curb step, the floor needs to be recessed or fitted with a linear drain, so water stays inside the pan. Niches and benches should slope inward for the same reason.
The seams where wall meets floor get reinforced with preformed pieces or mesh before the main coat, since those seams take the most movement.
Before tile goes in, fill the pan and let it stand for 24 hours. A drop in level means water is getting through, and that is far easier to fix while the membrane is still exposed.
Plain gypsum drywall should stay out of wet areas. Use a backer board made for damp rooms behind the shower tile instead.
Building permits inside Fort Lauderdale city limits go through the City of Fort Lauderdale. Hollywood, Pembroke Pines and Weston are separate cities with their own building departments.
The city issues permits for addresses inside city limits, and the county handles unincorporated areas. Check which one covers your address before you sign for the work.
Florida's building code applies statewide, and local building departments enforce it. Broward is inside the High-Velocity Hurricane Zone, so ask the building department what it requires for your address.
Hurricane season here runs June 1 to November 30. If the job includes exterior work, schedule that part around the season.
An address in Weston or Hollywood follows that city's building department instead, not the one in Fort Lauderdale.
Pipe and drain changes are done by a licensed plumber. Keep that work on its own schedule, so plumbing still in progress does not hold up the flood test.
Before the tile
With humid canal air and daily showers, a continuous membrane that runs up the walls is the first thing to check.
Outdoor showers and pool baths get wet every day, so they need the same sealed edges as an indoor shower.
A pool bath or outdoor shower gets the same test. Fill the pan and watch the level for 24 hours. A drop points to a gap while the slab is still open.
A canal house often has more than one wet area, such as a pool bath or an outdoor shower, and each one adds membrane and flood-test time. Pan size, niche count and the state of the existing wall change the number too. The membrane type matters as well. We quote after measuring the bathroom itself.
The slab sets the pace here. Once the old floor is out, the substrate is checked and the membrane goes on. A liquid system needs the manufacturer's cure time before the pan is filled, and the 24-hour flood test comes after that. A pool bath or outdoor shower follows the same order. Ask for each wait to be written into the schedule.
It depends on the address. Inside Fort Lauderdale city limits, the City of Fort Lauderdale issues the permit. Hollywood, Pembroke Pines and Weston are separate cities with their own building departments. Addresses in unincorporated areas go through the county. Florida's building code applies statewide, so confirm the right office before the work starts.
Some condo buildings and HOA communities set work hours and ask for approval before renovations. Read the association's rules before you book. A job can stall while it waits for approval, so ask early.
"Kerdi on the pan and wet walls, flood test the next day, then porcelain. Our Las Olas condo shower has stayed bone-dry through a full Broward rainy season."
Patricia M.
Fort Lauderdale, Master Shower Waterproofing
"They rebuilt the wet walls after a failed DIY membrane. Flood-test paperwork for the HOA was ready the same week we signed off."
David K.
Wilton Manors, Condo Wet Walls
"Previous tile guy skipped waterproofing. AP Stone tore it out, installed ANSI membrane, flood-tested, then retiled. Should have started here."
Angela R.
Fort Lauderdale, Shower Rebuild
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